Missing Mocha girl found murdered

Nine-year-old Sade Stoby, who went missing on Friday afternoon, was found brutally murdered early yesterday morning not far from her North Barnwell, East Bank Demerara home, and there was evidence that she was sexually molested.

The gruesome discovery of the battered and bruised body ended a frantic search for the child who never arrived home after leaving the Mocha Primary School on Friday afternoon. The discovery yesterday threw the entire village into shock and scores of persons journeyed to the area where the child’s body was found. When Stabroek News visited the area yesterday the child’s body had just been removed and residents were overheard discussing her killing while her mother was being comforted by relatives.

On Saturday the family had contacted Stabroek News over the missing girl and a report was carried in yesterday’s Sunday Stabroek.

Stabroek News understands that two males, including a 16-year-old, have since been arrested by the police and are assisting in the investigation.

The child’s body was discovered by her father, Eric Stoby and brother, Karlon Stoby, who were searching for her. According to her brother her face was swollen with marks of violence and her neck, which was also swollen, appeared to have been broken. The child was found lying on her side in a small pool of water and her uniform was bunched up around her waist exposing the lower part of her body. Her private parts were exposed and her underwear was nearby. According to the brother evidence of sexual molestation was evident to the naked eye. He said her socks were also found in the water while her shoes were a short distance away from her body on the ground. Her school bag was still around her shoulders. A pair of adult-sized green slippers was also found in the vicinity of the child’s body along with a child’s orange top.

Sade and other children who live in North Barnwell, an area located behind Mocha Arcadia which has no electricity and is bushy, are forced to journey a far distance to get to school, many times passing areas where there are no houses. Sade’s mother, Sharon Berry said that her daughter usually went to and from school in the company of other children who live near to her home. However, last Friday some of her friends had only attended school half day while others did not attend school.

The child left school in the company of two other girls but they reached their homes before hers leaving her to continue alone.

The child was last seen about fifteen minutes away from her home by herself sucking a piece of cane. From that point no one knows what transpired but according to her weeping mother the only thing she is sure about is that her child met a horrible and painful death. The woman said it is hard to comprehend that someone would have wanted to do something like that to her child. “